As many of you may know, we have a distribution business distributing body and bath care products to Caribbean Islands out of one of the free zones. Our business has been functioning slickly and well and we were at the stage where we felt we had overcome all problems with Aduana, DR officialdom and a host of other local issues. We are happy! We tell other people we know how to do it... But, with doing business in the DR, pride always comes to a fall.
This Christmas season, we were short of a number of products for customers. We needed to get 2 pallets of products in quickly to deliver to customers before Christmas - and that is where the "DR Business" story starts. We usually bring in by container by ship, the container comes from the Puerto Plata port sealed and gets to the free zone to our facility where it is opened and inspected by customs. Never a problem. With this quick two pallets, we decided to use UPS for speed - through Santo Domingo.
December 1 - Not expecting any problems, we gave UPS our free zone paperwork, numbers and whatever, to clear quickly and deliver to our facility to ship to our customers by around the 3rd/4th of December. First problem, customs finds a vague problem with our Free Zone permissions and tell us that we cannot bring in completed product. We now have to pay duty. We fight and quickly get our usual reliable clearning agents involved. Mistake number one - We trusted UPS and did not get clearning agents involved quickly enough.
We attempt to get a 'special clearance' from the Free Zone commission for a clearance that we already have, and they don't understand what we want. "Stupid Gringo's" they can't read their paperwork! Also, the value of the shipment is not so high that we push this very hard. Our clearning agents negotiate the duty and we agree to pay duty. At this stage it is more important to satisfy our customers.
Two weeks into December - Good, we're still barely in time to deliver to customers, but we're losing our shirts as by now, we've offered free shipping to make up for late delivery.
So we wait for the delivery of the two pallets - it is not happening... Call again. Next problem. The contents of the two pallets do not agree with the commercial invoice. We scratch our heads. Figure out that while this shipment is in customs, we're being stolen blind. Everyone walking by, simply help themselves to a jar of fluffy Pina Colada Body Mousse or Fruits and Flowers Body Mist. So, the contents won't ever agree with the invoice 'cause by now at least 25% of the contents is stolen. Customs fine us - $6,000 for a shrinking shipment initially worth $2,000 of which we've already agreed to pay 30% duty. The clearning agents send out their 'fixer'. Customs will not 'fix' without us paying more.... more than 30% duty, which we were not supposed to pay in the first place.
We tell our customers we cannot deliver - which does not go down well. We have to eat more crow. A supplier that cannot deliver just before Chrismas is usually no good. We manage to salvage all of the customers excepting a small one or two.
Today - Three days before Christmas - the story has not ended yet - the fixer is still fixing - we have not received our two pallets, the products on our two pallets are shrinking by the minute and we look quite silly to our customers. To add insult to injury, gifts that we were going to give to some customers, some friends and so on, are on these pallets.
That's why I drink a lot of wine in the DR! and I will never ever be proud again! Every container that comes through to process unscathed from now on, I will personally kiss!
This Christmas season, we were short of a number of products for customers. We needed to get 2 pallets of products in quickly to deliver to customers before Christmas - and that is where the "DR Business" story starts. We usually bring in by container by ship, the container comes from the Puerto Plata port sealed and gets to the free zone to our facility where it is opened and inspected by customs. Never a problem. With this quick two pallets, we decided to use UPS for speed - through Santo Domingo.
December 1 - Not expecting any problems, we gave UPS our free zone paperwork, numbers and whatever, to clear quickly and deliver to our facility to ship to our customers by around the 3rd/4th of December. First problem, customs finds a vague problem with our Free Zone permissions and tell us that we cannot bring in completed product. We now have to pay duty. We fight and quickly get our usual reliable clearning agents involved. Mistake number one - We trusted UPS and did not get clearning agents involved quickly enough.
We attempt to get a 'special clearance' from the Free Zone commission for a clearance that we already have, and they don't understand what we want. "Stupid Gringo's" they can't read their paperwork! Also, the value of the shipment is not so high that we push this very hard. Our clearning agents negotiate the duty and we agree to pay duty. At this stage it is more important to satisfy our customers.
Two weeks into December - Good, we're still barely in time to deliver to customers, but we're losing our shirts as by now, we've offered free shipping to make up for late delivery.
So we wait for the delivery of the two pallets - it is not happening... Call again. Next problem. The contents of the two pallets do not agree with the commercial invoice. We scratch our heads. Figure out that while this shipment is in customs, we're being stolen blind. Everyone walking by, simply help themselves to a jar of fluffy Pina Colada Body Mousse or Fruits and Flowers Body Mist. So, the contents won't ever agree with the invoice 'cause by now at least 25% of the contents is stolen. Customs fine us - $6,000 for a shrinking shipment initially worth $2,000 of which we've already agreed to pay 30% duty. The clearning agents send out their 'fixer'. Customs will not 'fix' without us paying more.... more than 30% duty, which we were not supposed to pay in the first place.
We tell our customers we cannot deliver - which does not go down well. We have to eat more crow. A supplier that cannot deliver just before Chrismas is usually no good. We manage to salvage all of the customers excepting a small one or two.
Today - Three days before Christmas - the story has not ended yet - the fixer is still fixing - we have not received our two pallets, the products on our two pallets are shrinking by the minute and we look quite silly to our customers. To add insult to injury, gifts that we were going to give to some customers, some friends and so on, are on these pallets.
That's why I drink a lot of wine in the DR! and I will never ever be proud again! Every container that comes through to process unscathed from now on, I will personally kiss!